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Name: _____________________Period:___
Lynx and Hare Predation
Ecology 2: Populations and Biodiversity
CH. 5,6
http://www.eduweb.com/portfolio/studyworks/predators8a.html
Background:
Populations do not grow indefinitely. Limiting factors keep them at or below carrying capacity of the environment. The
interaction between the predator and prey maintains a balance in population sizes. Populations of predators and prey
experience changes in their numbers over a period of years. The interaction between lynx and hare in Canada has been
studied extensively.
Population Growth Pre-Lab Questions:
1. Which four rates work together to influence a population’s growth (increase and decrease)? ___________________
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2. What happens to a population in which the birth rate exceeds the death rate? _______________________________
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3. What happens to a population in which the death rate exceeds the birth rate? _______________________________
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4. What happens to a population in which the birth rate is equal to the death rate? ____________________________
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5. Is the pattern of growth exhibited by human populations exponential or logistic? ____________________________
6. Describe the difference between a density dependent limiting factor and a density independent limiting factor.
Give an example of each.
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Use the background information on the website to answer the following questions.
7. How many hares must a lynx consume to survive for the next generation? __________________________________
Procedure:
Go to the website listed above. Read the introduction. Follow the simulation.
Data Table:
Generation
1
2
3
# of Hares
# of Lynx
Hares Eaten
Hares
Remaining
Lynx
Starved
Lynx
Remaining
Lynx Babies
Name: _____________________Period:___
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Ecology 2: Populations and Biodiversity
CH. 5,6
Name: _____________________Period:___
Ecology 2: Populations and Biodiversity
CH. 5,6
Results: Graph your results. Place the population size on the Y-axis and the number of generations on the X-axis. Plot
the hare population using one color and then plot the lynx population in another color. Be sure to include the title, axis
labels, and a key.
Name: _____________________Period:___
Ecology 2: Populations and Biodiversity
CH. 5,6
Analysis: Answer the following questions in complete sentences.
1. Looking at the graph, what pattern can be seen between the population sizes of the lynx and the hare?
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2. What is the cause of this pattern?
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3. Between which generations did the hares experience exponential growth? How did this affect the population of the
lynx?
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4. During which generations did the hare population crash and what affect did the lynx population have on the crash?
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5. What would happen to the lynx and hare populations is there was a drought and there was not enough food for the
hares?
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6. Is the drought, mentioned in #5 a density dependent or density independent limiting factor? Explain.
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7. How would the hare population change if all the lynx were trapped and moved away from the area? Make sure to
include the type of growth.
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